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www.thevillagenews.co.za
10 March 2021
LOVE A LITTLE LOCAL
ProActive Fitness is moving house Writer & Photographer Taylum Meyer
P
roActive Fitness at the Mussel Centre in Hermanus Industrial has been an integral part of the Hermanus fitness community for almost 12 years, since the gym first opened its doors on 11 May 2009. The popular gym is owned by Mathew Browne, a cycling enthusiast, and will soon be moving to an exciting new premises at the Hermanus Sports Club on 1 April. Mathew, who has always had a passion for fitness, grew up in Durban and went on to study Human Movement Studies (now commonly known as Sport Science) from 1993 to 1996 at the University of Durban-Westville. Shortly after he graduated, Mathew got an opportunity to work overseas at a fitness club in the UK, where he stayed until the director of the club asked him to move back to South Africa to manage a gym he had just taken over: Hermanus Health and Fitness located above Eastcliff Spar. Mathew didn’t know much about Hermanus at that time, but took a risk and moved here in 2002. He settled into his new job fairly quickly, thanks to his clear passion for fitness and his ability to make every client feel welcome, comfortable and important. In 2003, ex-Springbok Captain and Laureus World Sports Academy legend, Morné du Plessis, introduced himself to several individuals in Hermanus including Mathew at Hermanus Health and Fitness, to talk about the concept and feasibility of opening some kind of sports centre for the community, on the exact land where the Hermanus Sports Club is now. Mathew took to the idea immediately and Morné went on to approach the Overstrand Municipality with his vision for Hermanus as the perfect location for a sports centre. Mathew’s meeting with Morné planted
a seed, and since 2003, he has dreamed of creating a state of the art wellness and fitness centre that would put Hermanus on the map in the fitness community. He remained the manager at Hermanus Health and Fitness until it was sold in 2009 and he decided it was time to take yet another risk and start his own gym. He was joined in his new business venture by Alex Smith (Mathew’s colleague at Hermanus Health and Fitness), Marion du Plessis and Nosipho Memani, who became, respectively, a gym instructor, receptionist, and receptionist / female attendant at Mathew’s new gym, ProActive Fitness – where they still work to this day. Mathew’s dream of being part of a sports centre never wavered and when the Hermanus Sports Club was founded behind Hermanus High School, he set about the process of surveying and securing a plot of land to build on and, after several lengthy delays, a 45-year lease was officially registered at the deeds office. The dream finally started to become a reality! Mathew (the Director of ProActive Fitness & Building Development) found some investors and started working on the project with the help of his new building co-directors Derek Wheals and Claude Tyers. Once the final architectural drawings done by Engelbrecht & Scorgie Architectural Office were approved by the relevant parties, the building of ProActive’s new 2 100m2 gym began. The new ProActive Fitness promises to be everything it is now – and more. The walls of the building have been fitted with large glass panes in place of walls to allow in lots of light and the roof throughout the building is fitted with special sheeting which will prevent the gym from overheating on hot days. The entire building is also wheelchair friendly.
Upon entering the building on 1 April, you will be greeted by the same friendly staff as always at their new reception area. To the left of reception is Mathew’s office and to the right is a 100m2 pilates and yoga studio. Behind that is Wilson & Schneider Biokineticists Inc., a 200m2 privately-run studio with therapy rooms. Directly behind reception is the health café which will offer free WiFi, coffees, shakes and a variety of healthy foods. The Sauna and TanCan, and the men’s and women’s spacious changing rooms are located behind the café. To the left of the café is a 590m2 openplan, purpose-built, double-volume gym area that most of ProActive’s members and nine excellent personal trainers will surely be looking forward to: the training section consisting of cardio machines, free weights and resistance machines. With a staggering length of 63m, members will be able to move freely and enjoy more space in their workouts. Behind this massive room and to the left of Mathew’s office are three health and beauty rooms, and at the other end the second of the gym's studios at 100m2, the dance studio which will be used for classes like Zumba, Pound, step and tone, body pump and aerobics. When this room is unoccupied, members will be able to use it to train in if they want a bit of privacy. Behind the dance studio is possibly Mathew’s favourite room, the 100m2 RealRyder studio, equipped with its own sound system for spinning sessions and 25 state of the art indoor RealRyder cycling bikes, which Mathew spent four days putting together straight from the box. To the right of the dance studio is another private business, run by Schalk Holloway, dubbed ‘The Arena’. This 300m2 room will be used for functional training (a classification of
ProActive Fitness will be opening on their new premises at the Hermanus Sports Club on 1 April at 5am. GRAPHIC: Engelbrecht & Scorgie Architectural Office
exercise which involves training the body for the activities performed in daily life), combative skills (such as Krav Maga Israeli Combative training) and self-defence. SAJKA Karate (Sensei Ronnie), Kenjitsu (John), Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (Deon), and several other martial art styles will also be presented inside The Arena. The last section of the new gym, and probably the pièce de résistance, is the outdoor, 300m2 high-quality AstroTurf which is accessible from The Arena and the massive training room. Members will be able to use this area to do training, which includes things like battle rope, sled pulls, the farmers walk, etc. – all while enjoying the fresh air and a beautiful view of the mountain. Mathew hopes that the addition of the gym to the Hermanus Sports Club will make it an epicentre for sport, health and fitness which touring teams will want to visit and where international sports events can take place. Already at the Club are six tennis courts, four squash courts, two netball courts, a restaurant and bar, and a new BMX
track and skatepark. ProActive Fitness at the Mussel Centre will be closed from Friday 26 March to Wednesday 31 March, and the new premises will open on Thursday 1 April at 05:00. Mathew asks all his members to please bear with them while they are closed. They are moving all the equipment themselves to ensure that everything remains in pristine condition. If you are currently a willing member who would like to assist the ProActive team in their move you can contact Mathew on 084 358 9827. For Mathew, this is an 18 year old dream come true and he can’t wait to share it with his members and to ‘knock their socks off’! We wish Mathew and his fitness family good luck as they move into their new home and begin this new adventure together. The new gym will be open from Mon to Fri 05:00 - 19:30, and on Sat 06:00 - 13:00. Follow them on Facebook for updates on their progress of the new building. If you have any queries call 028 313 2074 / 084 358 9827.
